Monday, July 21, 2008

The Shack

This is a book that's been out for awhile, but I just now had the chance to read. I bought it during our 5 hour flight delay at the airport. There was a man in the store who saw me pick it up. He came over to me and said..."that's the best book I've ever read." So, I chose it and read it in full during the wait.

It's one of those books that will stay with you and make you question and think. There's a discussion on responsibility and expectation and religion and rules that is very thought provoking. Forgiveness and relationships are also discussed. All of this is backdrop in an intriguing and fascinating fictional story about loss.

On the back of the book:

The Shack wrestles with the timeless question, "Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain?"

One of the chapters in the book uses this quote:

God is a Verb
---Buckminster Fuller

"I don't want to be first among a list of values; I want to be the center of everything. When I live in you, then together we can live through everything that happens to you. Rather than a pyramid, I want to be a mobile, where everything in your life---your friends, family, occupation, thoughts, activities--is connected to me but moves with the wind, in and out and back and forth, in an incredible dance of being."

Another quote from the book:

"I already told you that forgiveness does not create a relationship. Unless people speak the truth about what they have done and change their mind and behavior, a relationship of trust is not possible. When you forgive someone you certainly release them from judgment, but without true change, no real relationship can be established."

Read it and then come back and tell me what you think.

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